Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the United States. In fifteen years, the annual number of Lyme disease cases increased by 101%, and 93% of all reported cases came from 10 states in the Northeast and Midwest (Bacon, Kugeler & Mean). Lyme disease is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi and is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected ticks (CDC data 2013). In the early 1900s, European doctors discovered a type of illness causing redness and rashes associated with tick bites. In the 1970s in the United States, children in Lyme, Connecticut, were developing these rashes and other symptoms associated with bacteria found in Europe. The disease was called Lyme disease, and the Borrelia burgdorferi associated with the new disease was found in the intestines of the vector, the adult deer tick. After the disease was designated, the number of cases increased significantly. (Bratton, Whiteside, Hovan, Engle & Edwards 2008). Most people become infected in the spring and summer. Infected deer ticks bite them and are no larger than the size of a sesame seed (CDC transmission 2013). The greatest number of reported cases are children aged 5 to 14 and adults aged 50 to 70 (Bratton, Whiteside, Hovan, Engle & Edwards 2008). Children are at greater risk of being bitten by an infected tick. Being outside and running through brush and wooded areas increases risk (Bratton, Whiteside, Hovan, Engle & Edwards 2008). The Lyme Disease Association found that 37% of reported cases were in children, or 1,590,449 children affected between 1990 and 2011. (PR Newswire 2013). Lyme is a debilitating disease, especially in children who have...... middle of paper ......ugeler, KJ, Mean, PS (2008). Lyme disease surveillance – United States, 1992-2006. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 57(10), 1-9. ^ l0ZQ%3d%3d# db=c9h&AN=34693908.Bratton, RL, Whiteside, JW, Hovan, MJ, Engle, RL, Edwards, F.D. (2008). Diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. Proceedings of the Mayo Clinic, 83(4), 556-571. doi:10.4065/83.5.566.Epps, SC (2003). Diagnosis, treatment and prevention of Lyme disease in children. Pediatric Medicines, 5(6), 363-72. Doi: http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.proxygsu-arm1.galileo.usg.edu/eds/detail?sid=ce0f81ad-b290-495c-b638-42c69b562e36%40sessionmgr4005&vid=1&hid=4111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzL WxpdmUmc2 NvcGU9c2l0ZQ% 3d %3d#db=mnh&AN=12765486